Hi folks.
I was thinking about pull a Y-usb cable (those with 2 usb input and one female output) from computer to touchstone and try to charge the pre.
Theorically with that kind of cable the touchstone will get 0'5V and 1A (0,5A form each usb port) and perhaps it will began to charge the pre. Has anybody tried this? It seems a cheap and clean solution to me.

I'm not sure this is a good idea as it may be too much for the touchstone - or it might make no difference. It sounds like you are trying to 'pull up' the battery with extra juice. I'd say the problem you (possibly) have is not the charge current, but the possibility that the battery is too low to accept a charge.

In the past, I have charged 'flat' 12v Gel batteries with a 'Y' cable. One branch of the Y goes to the dead battery and one to a partially or fully charged battery. The charger detects the half charged one and initiates the charging process, but the charge goes to the dead battery (or a bit to both). so the good battery 'pulls up' the dead one.

WARNING: I did not do this with the lithum-ion chemistry you will find in a mobile phone battery and the charging circuits and other variables may be different - meaning this might not work or even might explode your battery - check with experts before trying any of this!!!!!

Your best bet is to plug your standard charge cable directly into the phone and leave it on charge overnight or longer. If it's completely dead, then maybe you can research other techniques - ensuring they are safe!

Of course. The Pre3 has a removable battery. I think replacements are available and aren't very expensive so if a long charge doesn't work, replacement is probably the easiest option.

I'm not sure this is a good idea as it may be too much for the touchstone - or it might make no difference. It sounds like you are trying to 'pull up' the battery with extra juice. I'd say the problem you (possibly) have is not the charge current, but the possibility that the battery is too low to accept a charge.

In the past, I have charged 'flat' 12v Gel batteries with a 'Y' cable. One branch of the Y goes to the dead battery and one to a partially or fully charged battery. The charger detects the half charged one and initiates the charging process, but the charge goes to the dead battery (or a bit to both). so the good battery 'pulls up' the dead one.

WARNING: I did not do this with the lithum-ion chemistry you will find in a mobile phone battery and the charging circuits and other variables may be different - meaning this might not work or even might explode your battery - check with experts before trying any of this!!!!!

Your best bet is to plug your standard charge cable directly into the phone and leave it on charge overnight or longer. If it's completely dead, then maybe you can research other techniques - ensuring they are safe!

Of course. The Pre3 has a removable battery. I think replacements are available and aren't very expensive so if a long charge doesn't work, replacement is probably the easiest option.

I'll try to explain better:
Touchstone doesn't charge from a PC, it needs Palm's charger. I believe that the main reason is the low usb amperage (0.5A) and perhaps a Y-cable will solvent that, because it will give 1A (from 2 usb ports) and eventually it will be enough, I supose.

The specs of the palm charger are 5,1V and 1A (I believe) so should not be problems with overcharge

I'll try to explain better:
Touchstone doesn't charge from a PC, it needs Palm's charger. I believe that the main reason is the low usb amperage (0.5A) and perhaps a Y-cable will solvent that, because it will give 1A (from 2 usb ports) and eventually it will be enough, I supose.

The specs of the palm charger are 5,1V and 1A (I believe) so should not be problems with overcharge

p.d. apologizes for my english, i'm not native speaker.

Your English is fine. I guess I read it and thought you were trying to fix a fault. My mind jumped to my own experience with batteries and 'Y'-cables.

I thought the charger was a bit more - like 1.2A, but I checked the paperwork and it states "5Vdc, 1000mA" (1A). I thought it was a bit more because in theory, there are losses from inductive charging and I thought the touchstone might need a bit of extra juice - but of course, that would mean plugging in direct would deliver more...

I expect there is some tolerance.

So, it might work, but for safety's sake you might want to check (if you have a meter) that the Y-cable is definitely delivering 5V, 1A before plugging in the TS. Good luck!